Then, above a second column I wrote the heading: "Rwanda in 2060." In EVERY one of my six classes, before I even said a word, there were audible responses of amazement. It's like they've never been granted the freedom to think creatively, openly, with no limitations. I think they really enjoyed it.

Most of them had grand ambitions for their country. I got a couple "It will be like heaven/paradise" responses, and Zainabu's which I just loved: "It will be like WOW."

But then there were also some pessimists. One kid was convinced there won't be any people because they'll all have died from AIDS. Yikes! Another girl said it "will be like Sodom and Gomorrah"!

Some predicted the traditional culture will be "destroyed."

A few very bright kids hit on the fact that I wanted to drive home: there will likely be a ton of people, and the same small land area. There are 10 million people in Rwanda today; I had the kids guess predicted population numbers for the years 2025 and 2050. When I shared the actual figures (15 and 25 million, respectively), an exasperated Jean-Baptiste cried out in disbelief, "Teacher! HOW THEY WILL LIVE?!" My question exactly, buddy.

There were some creative solutions to the population issue. More than one class said we'll all be able to go live on Mars by then (one kid was even pulling for Jupiter and Saturn). Some said they'll just move to other countries, so I tried to illustrate the concept of a brain drain. One kid said we can just invade Congo or even Uganda and take some of their land by force (I replied that personally I would not want to mess with Congolese soldiers). One of my real smarties raised maybe the most plausible answer, that everyone can live in high-rises, thus artificially creating more land.

I've been involved with Match Education for about 12 years — for seven years as a board member and as CEO since 2011. Before joining Match, I started and ran the Newark Charter School Fund and taught education stuff at Harvard Business School (odd but true). Way back, I was a dot-com entrepreneur. My first job in education, at 23, was as an assistant principal in a catholic school in Harlem.

We do four things here. We run a public K12 charter school in Boston (Match Charter School). We run a graduate school of education that prepares rookie teachers for work in high-need schools (Sposato GSE). We run an alternative college and jobs program for low-income students (Match Beyond). And we share our ideas and practices with the world (Match Export).

Assorted personal facts: I moved to New Jersey from Denmark when I was nine (the Danish part explains my weird name). Upon arrival, I learned English by watching television. I have three brothers. My wife and I have three daughters. The first thing on my mind when I wake up every day is espresso - I really like it. I also watch a lot of soccer on tv. I think it's the greatest sport in the world and a force for world peace.